Starting Over
by Calypso.Bay
Summary: Imagine there's no pain, misery... imagine everybody happy, gathered in one place, where nobody is alone... Elizabeth imagines this every day of her life. Now, she can have it.


_Don't be mean, now. It's my second Harry Potter, and the first was… eh. Hopefully this one will be better. While you're reading, particularly in the second and last paragraph, note how the story connects to the song. Read and review. –VFD_

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Chapter One

_Imagine there's no heaven  
It's easy if you try  
No hell below us  
Above us only sky  
Imagine all the people  
Living for today..._

Rain streaked the car windows like the tears down her face, tears that she had shed too many times before. In a flash they were gone, swept away by the windshield wipers, but the reappeared just as quickly.

Elizabeth lived her life this way. She had shed tears, many, many tears, and had sorrowfully wiped them away, and they only reappeared later. But now she had a chance to start over. She would no longer live aiming to get somewhere special in the next life. She would savor the happy moments and ponder the sad ones, and only remember the important and life-changing ones. Elizabeth vowed to live each day as it was, and live each night preparing for the next day.

When Elizabeth was ten years old, she went to a summer horseback riding camp. When she came back, her home was gone, along with all of her memories and family. Only her cat was saved from the flames that ate up her life, abandoning her on the world's doorstep. Luckily, she had kind, caring relatives. For three years she has lived with her Aunt Tracy in Dublin, and now she is going to learn something that will change her life forever.

The car rolled to a stop in front of a small, cheery home, bright and welcoming even through the gray sky and vicious rain. The driver stepped out and went around to Elizabeth's side of the vehicle, but she was already marching towards the bright red door. Grasping the gold knocker, she took a deep breath and banged on the familiar brass panel. Elizabeth was nervous and glad at the same time; she had been away with a friend for a few weeks, and now that summer vacation was nearing its end, she had a feeling that Aunt Tracy's surprise summoning was about her education.

Just as the heavy piece of metal hit the door, the red wood swung away to reveal a beaming young woman, her dirty blond hair pulled into a messy bun. "Elizabeth," she sang in her melodic voice, "I'm so glad to see you! Oh, darling, look at you, you're soaking wet. Come inside." Aunt Tracy paid the driver and whipped up a cup of hot chocolate, dotting it with little white marshmallows. Sitting opposite of Elizabeth, who was slouched in a large and surprisingly comfortable navy blue armchair, she smiled again and said, "Elizabeth, I have some exciting news about your schooling."

Aunt Tracy's house was so bright and happy, with its pale yellow walls and blue and red furnishing, Elizabeth's spirits couldn't be downed by much. Her cat, Sabrina, forced her way onto the teenager's lap as she asked, "Okay, I thought so. What's going on?" Aunt Tracy's smile faltered a bit, but she said, "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you before. It hadn't occurred to me that you had it, but… Elizabeth, my dear, your parents were magical folk. It was in their will that you, when the time comes, be sent to a school for people like you and your parents, a school for witches and wizards. Elizabeth, starting this year, you'll be attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

The young girl stared open-mouthed at her aunt, who began to laugh. "I'm… huh? What kind of trick are you pulling on me now, Aunt Tracy?" she said. Elizabeth was almost convinced that her aunt was fooling her in some way, but she could tell when Aunt Tracy lied, and she wasn't lying now. "Let me show you," Tracy said, and stood to retrieve a glass of water from the kitchen sink. Then, darting into the room that Elizabeth was in, she threw the water at her niece, who yelped and put her hands over her face. But, the water never hit her. Instead, it was now several large bubbles floating around the room. Sabrina enjoyed them for quite a while before they finally popped.

Elizabeth gawked at Aunt Tracy. "See?" she said. "You made that happen. You're a witch. Your parents were too, but after the fire, we—your other magical relatives and I—decided to wait a while until you showed signs of power. Or, if you prefer, we wanted to give you some time to cope with the losses." Now Elizabeth was smiling, too. "Wow," she said more to herself than to her aunt, "I am…different, but there are others? Wow. Wait a second, this is kind of scary." Aunt Tracy frowned. "Why, Elizabeth?" she said, concerned. Elizabeth stared at her lap. "Well, I won't know anyone, and I won't know any_thing_, and I don't know what I need and I don't know how everything works and—"

Elizabeth was cut off by her aunt. "I have everything under control. Later we'll go to Diagon Alley—you'll love it there—and get your things, and then we'll get a letter from Dumbledore—Dumbledore is the headmaster at Hogwarts, oh what a jolly old fellow—explaining how you'll be in the third year, and… oh, this is so exciting!" she rambled on. "You're going to Hogwarts! Oh, just _imagine_ what you'll do there…"

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_Author's Note: Well, I hope this is better than the last one. I've come out with some pretty good Harry Potter stories, but maybe I'm just on a sour note right now. Hope you like it._


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